I found a supplier with good prices but they have 7-9 days shipping. Is that too long or not? What's your opinion?
It depends what the item is and what your customer is expecting. I used to sell loads on amazon, and some people would complain if they didn't get their item within 5 days. I would say if you can let your customer know up front that there is this time to receive and then update them another once to say the item is shipping, then after its received then thats the best you can do.
biggest things is being upfront. i found i've done better feedback wise (higher rate left feedback --not necessarily higher % of positives) with priority mail (1-3days). As long as you've been upfront and honest it shouldn't be too bad. also matters what other sellers in the niche are doing. if every1 offers free first class shipping, and you're taking 9 days, there is no reason to go with you for the same price. ya know?
Like Panther28 responded, it depends. You would need to give us some more information on the type of item, rough price guide, competition, etc. More often than not this would be way too long but it totally depends on the item and the availability of the item. Would you be prepared to wait 7-9 days for delivery when you can get the same item for the same price in 3-5 days?
Thank you all for response, more info below: I know the shipping time is way too long, but it is out of my control. The prices will be 15% less then competition and it's small $5-$30 items. Warehouse is in US, they just use this slow shipping company to save money.
well, best bet would just be to try it. do a few market tests on accounts you're iwlling to get low DSR and give it a go. as long as the MOQ isn't huge from the warehouse it's worth a shot. if it works out ok, then you're good to go.
The thing is,people these days expect free AND fast postage ... i know its unfair on sellers,but thats how it is. People might start giving you low DSR's and if you get too many,this could get your account suspended for good . I send my items same/next day , depending on the time buyer paid,and i still get low DSR's on dispatch time !!! How is it possible for me to post items quicker ?! Before buyer orders lol ?! Its unfair,but its not going to change anytime soon
7-9 days is really pushing it. People are having issues with low DSR's from people who are getting their items delivered to their front door in 5 days. People don't see "Business Days" - they see "Weeks" and they always round up. If your item ships in 7 Business days, this is the same as 2 weeks to a person. - and even longer for some categories of items such as Womens clothing. I had to start literally overnighting stuff to save my accounts while I was leaving the womens clothing categories and I could only do sales on Sundays assuming items would sell on Sunday and Monday and be at their door on Thursday and Friday, because if they werent then chances were that I would have to deal with complaints.
Amazon can get any product to me in 2 days. That has become my expectation with all shippers. Not that it's reasonable, it's just my expectation. I'm currently waiting on an order and it's been about 10 days. I've already emailed them twice because it seems like a long time to wait to ship something from 1000 miles away.
You would have to tell your customers up front that it takes 10-14 days to receive (7-9 days to you plus your own 5 day shipping to the customer). Or you can buy a little inventory to have so you can ship to the customer quicker.
Not so long, depends on your patient. As I grow older and older it seems that the time is flying faster and faster (not intended to sound so morbid)
The faster your customer receive their item the better. I always strive for under 5 day. But if you state the shipping time in advance than there should not be much problem.
That shipping time is reasonable if that means in 7-9 days the customer receives the item. Test out your hookup for the product first though because drop shippers like to talk about fast delivery but when it comes time for them to do it you will find out really just how proficient they are.
Especially with amazon people are use to getting their items in 2-3 days, so you'd have to make it super clear it would be more than a week and then you be fine